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Trending News: 2017 AIA Construction Contract Series

July 30, 2017

Recently, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) issued its once-every-ten-year revisions to some of the most commonly used documents in construction contracting, including the A101, B101 and A201 documents. The revisions are significant, and will impact all players in the industry, including owners, contractors and architects. Many revisions constitute notable improvements to these time-tested contract documents. Others pose threats to the unwary, and unintended consequences may follow in the absence of careful negotiation on the front end of a particular project. This article series explores those changes and offers brief insight into potential negotiation options. Related resources such as webinars and in-person seminars will be consolidated here as well in the interest of providing our clients and contacts with a one-stop resource on this matter.

Additional Changes to A201 | 2017 AIA Document Series – Revisions to the Core Contract Documents (Part 6)October 10, 2017 Part 6: Miscellaneous Additional Changes to A201. As final article of the series, Part 6 covers certain miscellaneous, but nonetheless, important changes in the A201 document which did not fit in the categories covered in Parts 1-5. Contractor’s Construction Schedule. The revised Section 3.10.1 significantly expands upon the Contractor’s duty to provide scheduling information at the front end of the Project. Formerly, upon being awarded a contract, the Contractor was required to provide a construction schedule, with no further specificity except that it would not “exceed time limits under the Contract Documents.” Now, the scheduling information must (unless the language is modified)…Read Full Article

B101 Owner/Architect Agreement | 2017 AIA Document Series – Revisions to the Core Contract Documents (Part 5)October 9, 2017 Part 5: Revisions to the B101 Owner/Architect Agreement. The changes in B101 dovetail with other newly-modified documents, such as the A201 General Conditions, and this article should be read in conjunction with Parts 1-4 of the series. Architect Compensation. Numerous changes have been made in the various sections of the Agreement dealing with the Architect’s compensation. For example, what constitutes Additional Services which warrant compensation over and above that paid for Basic Services has been substantially redefined. What was formerly deemed to be “Additional Services” is now broken into two categories: “Supplemental” and “Additional.” Supplemental Services are defined in Section 4.1 to…Read Full Article

Insurance and Bonding Provisions | 2017 AIA Document Series – Revisions to the Core Contract Documents (Part 4)October 8, 2017 Part 4: A201 and Related Documents: Insurance and Bonding Provisions. The Lay of the Land. The most significant changes brought about by the 2017 modifications are those related to the insurance and bonding. The modifications are sweeping, both in form and in substance. From a form standpoint, the documents look very different. In prior versions, the “guts” of the insurance requirements were contained in the very lengthy and complicated provisions of Article 11 of the A201. Often, the user-unfriendly nature of Article 11 caused many contracting parties to delete Article 11 altogether and replace it with their own custom insurance…Read Full Article

Owner/Contractor Relationship Revisions to A201 | 2017 AIA Document Series | Revisions to the Core Contract Documents (Part 3)August 25, 2017 Part 3: Owner/Contractor Relationship Revisions to A201 General Conditions Document This article is the third in a series that explores the 2017 modifications to the AIA’s most commonly used construction contracting documents, including the A101, B101 and A201 documents. The purpose of the series is to explain some of the more significant changes in order to identify possible issues of concern, and to tee up ideas for potential negotiation options to address those issues. After focusing on the dispute resolution provisions in Part 1 and the notice provisions in Part 2, Part 3 addresses some of the more significant modifications to…Read Full Article

Notice Requirements Under the Revised A201 | 2017 AIA Document Series | Revisions to the Core Contract Documents (Part 2)August 15, 2017 Part 2: Notice Requirements Under the Revised A201 General Conditions Document. This article is the second in a series which addresses the 2017 modifications to the AIA’s most commonly-used construction contract documents. Discussed herein are changes to the various notice requirements under the A201 General Conditions Document. While notice requirements are sometimes perceived as trite, they also can be outcome-determinative on large-impact issues. Understanding the changes that will now govern, absent modification of the form language, is critical to a successful outcome – whether an owner, contractor or architect. Notice Requirements Generally. As has always been the case, there are numerous references…Read Full Article

Dispute Resolution Under the Revised A201 | 2017 AIA Document Series | Revisions to the Core Contract Documents (Part 1)July 30, 2017 Recently, the AIA issued its once-every-ten-year revisions to some of the most commonly used documents in construction contracting, including the A101, B101 and A201 documents. The revisions are significant, and will impact all players in the industry, including owners, contractors and architects. Many revisions constitute notable improvements to these time-tested contract documents. Others pose threats to the unwary, and unintended consequences may follow in the absence of careful negotiation on the front end of a particular project. This article is the first in a series that will explore those changes and offer brief insight into potential negotiation options. Part 1:…Read Full Article